Health Department Investigating Rash Outbreak At Marseilles Competition

When you sign up for one of those extreme obstacle course races you expect to be physically challenged during the race and not after.

The Illinois Department of Public Health is asking any runners or spectators who developed a rash after being at the “Spartan Race” last month in Marseilles to contact them.  The race on July 20^th and 21^st had people going through water, mud and trees and apparently many of the runners came down with a type of poison ivy or severe rash.

The race’s director Mike Morris says it’s unclear how many people got the rash but he thinks it’s less than 5 percent of the competitors.  Morris says whenever he saw any poison ivy on the Marseilles course he made every effort in routing the course around the patches.

The department of public health has started a survey asking Spartan Race runners to respond as part of their investigation.  A Facebook page has also sprung up called “Spartan Rash”.  There are over 300 members of the page.